Joey Chestnut recently took issue with fans of Takeru Kobayashi, saying the Japanese competitive eater has lost his gift.

In the world of competitive eating, there are really only two names that reign supreme: Joey and Nathan. However, even though Takeru Kobayashi has apparently retired for real this time, you can believe his legions of fans are still defending him. But for Joey “Jaws” Chestnut, Kobayashi is no longer the “Tsunami” that he once was.

Kobayashi recently took to social media to give a little more background on his 2024 Netflix showdown with Chestnut, arguing the event was a misrepresentation of skills. “I suggested that the title of the Netflix retirement match be changed from a match to decide the strongest or best food fighter in the world to a competition to decide the strongest hot dog champion, because I thought it would be a distortion of the facts to decide that becoming the hot dog champion would make you the world’s strongest food fighter.” At that Labor Day hot dog eating contest, Chestnut scarfed down 83 dogs, easily topping Kobayashi’s 66.

After a fan praised Kobayashi by calling him the “strongest” competitive eater, Joey Chestnut challenged, “He doesn’t love competition. His fear of losing made caused him to take a break and stop getting better. Kobayashi should stay retired. He will never be champion in any of the foods you listed [hot dogs, tacos, chicken wings, etc.].” In another post, Chestnut added, “If he competed against me and other great eaters, I can say with almost absolute confidence that Kobayashi would place 2nd, 3rd, or 4th in every contest. He is a shell of his former self. I think his personal life has taken a toll on his professional life.”

From 2001 to 2006, Kobayashi was the reigning champ at the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, held annually every Fourth of July. But when Chestnut came on the scene, the game changed entirely, eventually becoming a 16-time champ with only one year of his streak interrupted.

With Kobayashi retired and Chestnut banned from the Nathan’s contest by Major League Eating over a “rival brand” dispute, it seems unlikely that the two will ever face off again. At the same time, Chestnut really has nothing left to prove and he knows it. In one additional post, he took another dig at his former rival, writing, “It’s truth. Lol. I really like him. But his crippling fear of losing was the reason he made excuses and stopped. While he was busy making excuses, I was making records in all the foods @FunDoshiyo thinks kobayashi could be a champion at.”